r6kbiofandomcom-20200213-history
Frilled Shark
Frilled Shark (Chlamydoselachus aguineus) INTRO: One of the world's living fossils, it is a creature from ancient times, and exhibits some very primal features. It resembles an eel, and has been mistaken for the sea serpents of legends. It has not evolved for thousands of years, for reasons unkown. Physical Properties The Frilled Shark is a conglomeration of many modern day marine animals. It has a gill slit directly cross it's throat, a trait completely unique even among sharks. Its jaws extend from the end of the head rather than from beneath, and has around 300 trident shaped teeth placed in around 25 rows. It's bone structure is fairly weak, in response to its nutrient deprived deep sea habitat. Its body is long with dermal ridges on each side of its stomach. The pectoral fins are fairly small, with a single dorsal fin, and a caudal fin that proceeds along the long ridge of the bodyline, with the slightest indent for a lower love. The pelvic, anal and dorsal fins are located at the far back of the body, giving the image of a streamlined jet. Habitat and Diet Frilled sharks can appear just about anywhere, but most sightings have been reported in South Africa, New Zealand and Norway. They live in depths of around 120-1280 metres. They feed on squids, small sharks and other deep sea fish. They are skilled hunters, as they have survived for thousands of years without the need for evolution. Recent evidence suggests that the Frilled Shark occasionaly makes forays far from the bottom more shallow depths. Hunting Methods Looking at the elongate shape, it is assumed that the Frilled Shark swims by rippling it's body, similar to an ell. Hoever, it's body is very buoyant, as a result of all the low density oils and hydrocarbons infused in it's body. This fact, together with it's fin arrangement, can lead us to assume that it may actually hover, and use it's fins for propulsion only when needed, similar to the striking motion snakes employ when catching prey. No one has ever actually seen a Frilled Shark feeding, so all this is hypothetical. However, given it's facial depressions and mouth cavities, it can be inferred that it uses its mouth to create a vacuum of sorts, so suck in cephalod prey, which, upon touching the vibration sensitive network within it's mouth, would cause the Frilled Shark to bite bown. Its feeding habits up till now are still a complete mystery, since a live specimen has never been captured. Reproduction This species reproduces year round, with a litter of 6 pups each. When they are born, the pups are only around 55 centimetres long. The female Frilled Shark has a much longer trunk to make room for their offspring. However, their gestation is around 42 months, or three and a half years, the longest of any vertebrate animals. This is probably a result of it's slow lifestyle deep under the sea. The intense cold of the deeps dampen the metabolic processes of the Frilled Sharks by far. Video: ﻿ Citations: "Frilled Shark" . Retrieved November 12, 2010, from http://www.deepseamonsters.com/component/content/article/59-frilled-shark.html What is a Frilled Shark? Retrieved November 12, 2010, from http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-frilled-shark.htm Deep Sea: Frilled Shark.Retrieved November 12, 2010, from﻿ http://www.elasmo-research.org/education/ecology/deepsea-frilled_shark.htm